“Ding ling ling……” The handphone’s ringtone sounded, shocking Xiao Ling out of his reverie. So it was his Little Aunt who was calling him; she had left for a business trip.
“Little Aunt, Mornin~” Xiao Ziling heard a roar burst out from his phone just as he opened his mouth.
“Dead Little Brat, why didn’t you pick up my call yesterday ah? Where did you run off to?” Little Aunt’s tone was rotten.
Upon hearing Little Aunt’s voice, his eyes grew hot. A thousand emotions swelled in his heart. He did not know how to answer for some time. Little Aunt was his sole relative, his own father being an only child. Because his grandparents had lived in that chaotic era*, although they had survived those loathsome years, from early on their bodies had already been over-taxed. Just as stability had been reached, they left this world, leaving behind only the three, his father, his mother, and Little Aunt.
His mother and Little Aunt were actually trafficked children his grandfather and grandmother had saved. During a long-distance train ride, his grandparents had discovered this problem and rescued them both. Although his mother was already five or six years old, she could not remember clearly where she had come from or her relatives. And Little Aunt was even smaller. Just over a week old, she wasn’t clear on where she had come from at all. After the fruitless police investigation, they had been decisively adopted by his grandparents.
His parents had been green plums and bamboo horse*; growing together since they were small, sentiments deeply rooted. So in the end, like a canal being built where water flows, they naturally became husband and wife, and also had Xiao Ziling this son.
The way Xiao Ziling’s face grew was closer to his mother’s. From what his father said, his mother had been cutely meng* ever since she was small, due to her doll-like face. At that time he felt that a sister definitely had to be this way. However, it was also because his mother’s appearance was very meng, other boys would be frequently enticed to come over and harass her. His father did not know how many fights he had gotten into for this reason, each time beaten till his head cracked and blood flowed. Once he went home, he still had to suffer Grandfather’s round of beatings. Xiao Ziling’s grandfather had beat up his father not because he had fought, but because he had not protected his little sister well. At that age, a pair of teardrops would be constantly hanging on his mother’s eyes, like pendants, but not. This caused his grandparents overwhelming distress and incomparable heartache, so his father could only be taught yet another lesson. However, his father never had any objection. According to him, seeing how his mother looked like at that time made him feel like a complete failure, not having fulfilled his responsibility as an older brother. So that was his willingness and consent to being punished. Thinking about it, his father’s eventually solid martial skills had probably been honed since that time.
Afterwards, when his father was not around, his mother had secretly told Xiao Ziling that actually, she had done it intentionally. The one who had made his punishment a reality was her. Although his father had won against the several rascals, his appearance had become rather tragic, and she had been the reason why. His mother had been afraid of getting hated by Grandfather and Grandmother since she had just been adopted by them. As such, his mother could only sell meng. Just that, she hadn’t thought Grandfather would thus severely teach his father a lesson. That incident led her to put down her wariness and deeply-buried heart, and wholeheartedly accept his grandparents as her own father and mother.
As for Little Aunt, she was not clear on anything. She had always taken his grandparents as her birth-parents, and Father and Mother as her biological siblings. So when Grandfather and Grandmother had told her Little Aunt was preparing to get married, she nearly collapsed, believing that his father and mother had both gone insane. That time, she had been in a dilemma, wondering whether to congratulate or to dissuade. Had his mother not accidentally heard what Little Aunt said in front of his grandparents, he reckoned Little Aunt would have been confused to death. It was at that moment that Little Aunt then knew of her birth. But by that time Little Aunt was already indifferent; because Little Aunt had always grown up showered by Grandfather and Grandmother’s abundant love, she had no regrets.
Little Aunt currently has yet to get married. It was said that she already has a partner she knows pretty well. Perhaps not long after, when the time is ripe she will get married. Pity that the end of the world was quickly arriving, and this did not give Little Aunt much time. Before the apocalypse came Little Aunt was on a business trip in a foreign land. Her phone always had no one answering, and after that, it could never connect. He didn’t know whether or not she had survived the darkest period.
“Dead little brat, did you hear me? If you’re alive give me a squeak,” Little Aunt once again roared as she had not heard a reply.
“Zhi……*haha!” Xiao Ziling – his soul having been called back by the Lioness of Hedong* – reined in his moved emotions then smiled slyly and gave a “zhi” squeak. From his phone came the sound of laughter and scolding.
“Don’t give me cheek, what happened yesterday? Why didn’t you pick up the phone?”
“Drank a little wine, slept like the dead. I just woke up. Little Aunt, I’m fine, be at ease.”
Little Aunt heard his words, breathed a sigh of relief before saying, “Ziling, elder brother and elder sister wouldn’t want you to get drunk, don’t disappoint them.”
“Little Aunt, I know, after this I won’t drink again.” The end of the world was impending. In that period with danger lurking at every side, getting drunk was without a doubt suicidal behaviour.
“Then that’s good, your words must count as your word ah, otherwise I won’t let you off.” Little aunt’s tone was ferocious, but the concern inside her language was impossible to conceal. Xiao Ziling didn’t want things to be like before his rebirth, and once again lose his Little Aunt. He decided that this time, he would definitely let Little Aunt remain by his side and hence look after her.
“Little Aunt, there’s something important I need to talk to you about, face-to-face. You better come back immediately.” Xiao Ziling’s tone was suddenly serious; Little Aunt could also hear the change. She anxiously asked, “What is it? Is it inconvenient to talk about it over the phone?”
“Really hard to explain clearly in one or two sentences, it’s better if you quickly come back.”
“Alright, once I finish dealing with the things here I’ll return.” Little Aunt was clear that her family’s nephew would not lightly speak such serious words, she was certain something has definitely happened at home. After that, she was in no mood to chat. She directly hung up the phone and went to clean up her own matters.
Why Xiao Ziling called his Little aunt back, the first reason was the impending apocalypse. He had to promptly inform Little Aunt to make good preparations, and another reason was that he was preparing to sell off the house his parents had left him. Even the house where his grandfather and grandmother had lived in would be cleared out.
Concerning the selling of his house, this type of big event he should first discuss with Little Aunt. Although his decision would not change regardless of whether Little Aunt would agree, the vital consultation was still necessary. Also, Xiao Ziling was confident he could persuade Little Aunt to praise his decision.
After all, when the apocalypse comes, people would, one after another, escape from the city to a base. Xiao Ziling’s residential region was a place that had been abandoned. That is to say, this place would be a zombie’s world in the future. There was no worth in letting the house be, so why not cash out in time. With capital, you could gather as many resources much as possible before the deadline, especially all kinds of food and drinking water. Scarcity was a solutionless issue even after 10 years of the apocalypse. Everyone had a severe lack of goods.
So the number one problem Xiao Ziling faced was how to persuade Little Aunt to believe the apocalypse was coming. Frankly admitting he had been reborn, this kind of stupid thing, Xiao Ziling absolutely would not do. The thing about his space also could not be divulged to Little Aunt. Not that he did not trust Little Aunt, but he was afraid of one hundred secrets one mistake* occurring.
Xiao Ziling did not wish to be thought of as problematic by other people and get directly extinguished when he has yet to gain the trust of his backer. Even more so, he did not wish to be dissected and researched. His country, this colossal machine – before the apocalypse no one could resist it. And even after the apocalypse, the power representing the country always loomed over the heads of the common people. It was only during the latter period that strong players from the common people evolved, Chu Zhitian’s appearance especially. Only then had the government’s grasp been broken, turning into a war lord’s separatist regime.
*Green plums and bamboo horses: 青梅竹马, an idiom meaning to have grown up / played together since childhood. Idiom came from a poem describing a boy and girl’s childhood. –
*meng: cuteness / moe
*ha ha: It’s supposed to be a chuckle / masculine laughter. A direct translation would be ‘he he’. But I’m sure most people would be reading the ‘he he’ as ‘hee hee’ instead of ‘h-ugh h-ugh’, the proper way to pronounce it. So I changed it to ‘ha ha’, which is more accurate in terms of conveying meaning, but less accurate in terms of staying true to the original text.
*Lioness of Hedong: idiom referring to a shrewish wife or a henpecked husband
*A hundred secrets, one mistake: 百密一疏, an idiom. Meaning, a single careless mistake leaks a hundred secrets. Literal meaning: Hundred secrets one lax, hundred dense one thin, one hundred close one sparse.
“Ding ling ling……” The handphone’s ringtone sounded, shocking Xiao Ling out of his reverie. So it was his Little Aunt who was calling him; she had left for a business trip.
“Little Aunt, Mornin~” Xiao Ziling heard a roar burst out from his phone just as he opened his mouth.
“Dead Little Brat, why didn’t you pick up my call yesterday ah? Where did you run off to?” Little Aunt’s tone was rotten.
Upon hearing Little Aunt’s voice, his eyes grew hot. A thousand emotions swelled in his heart. He did not know how to answer for some time. Little Aunt was his sole relative, his own father being an only child. Because his grandparents had lived in that chaotic era*, although they had survived those loathsome years, from early on their bodies had already been over-taxed. Just as stability had been reached, they left this world, leaving behind only the three, his father, his mother, and Little Aunt.
His mother and Little Aunt were actually trafficked children his grandfather and grandmother had saved. During a long-distance train ride, his grandparents had discovered this problem and rescued them both. Although his mother was already five or six years old, she could not remember clearly where she had come from or her relatives. And Little Aunt was even smaller. Just over a week old, she wasn’t clear on where she had come from at all. After the fruitless police investigation, they had been decisively adopted by his grandparents.
His parents had been green plums and bamboo horse*; growing together since they were small, sentiments deeply rooted. So in the end, like a canal being built where water flows, they naturally became husband and wife, and also had Xiao Ziling this son.
The way Xiao Ziling’s face grew was closer to his mother’s. From what his father said, his mother had been cutely meng* ever since she was small, due to her doll-like face. At that time he felt that a sister definitely had to be this way. However, it was also because his mother’s appearance was very meng, other boys would be frequently enticed to come over and harass her. His father did not know how many fights he had gotten into for this reason, each time beaten till his head cracked and blood flowed. Once he went home, he still had to suffer Grandfather’s round of beatings. Xiao Ziling’s grandfather had beat up his father not because he had fought, but because he had not protected his little sister well. At that age, a pair of teardrops would be constantly hanging on his mother’s eyes, like pendants, but not. This caused his grandparents overwhelming distress and incomparable heartache, so his father could only be taught yet another lesson. However, his father never had any objection. According to him, seeing how his mother looked like at that time made him feel like a complete failure, not having fulfilled his responsibility as an older brother. So that was his willingness and consent to being punished. Thinking about it, his father’s eventually solid martial skills had probably been honed since that time.
Afterwards, when his father was not around, his mother had secretly told Xiao Ziling that actually, she had done it intentionally. The one who had made his punishment a reality was her. Although his father had won against the several rascals, his appearance had become rather tragic, and she had been the reason why. His mother had been afraid of getting hated by Grandfather and Grandmother since she had just been adopted by them. As such, his mother could only sell meng. Just that, she hadn’t thought Grandfather would thus severely teach his father a lesson. That incident led her to put down her wariness and deeply-buried heart, and wholeheartedly accept his grandparents as her own father and mother.
As for Little Aunt, she was not clear on anything. She had always taken his grandparents as her birth-parents, and Father and Mother as her biological siblings. So when Grandfather and Grandmother had told her Little Aunt was preparing to get married, she nearly collapsed, believing that his father and mother had both gone insane. That time, she had been in a dilemma, wondering whether to congratulate or to dissuade. Had his mother not accidentally heard what Little Aunt said in front of his grandparents, he reckoned Little Aunt would have been confused to death. It was at that moment that Little Aunt then knew of her birth. But by that time Little Aunt was already indifferent; because Little Aunt had always grown up showered by Grandfather and Grandmother’s abundant love, she had no regrets.
Little Aunt currently has yet to get married. It was said that she already has a partner she knows pretty well. Perhaps not long after, when the time is ripe she will get married. Pity that the end of the world was quickly arriving, and this did not give Little Aunt much time. Before the apocalypse came Little Aunt was on a business trip in a foreign land. Her phone always had no one answering, and after that, it could never connect. He didn’t know whether or not she had survived the darkest period.
“Dead little brat, did you hear me? If you’re alive give me a squeak,” Little Aunt once again roared as she had not heard a reply.
“Zhi……*haha!” Xiao Ziling – his soul having been called back by the Lioness of Hedong* – reined in his moved emotions then smiled slyly and gave a “zhi” squeak. From his phone came the sound of laughter and scolding.
“Don’t give me cheek, what happened yesterday? Why didn’t you pick up the phone?”
“Drank a little wine, slept like the dead. I just woke up. Little Aunt, I’m fine, be at ease.”
Little Aunt heard his words, breathed a sigh of relief before saying, “Ziling, elder brother and elder sister wouldn’t want you to get drunk, don’t disappoint them.”
“Little Aunt, I know, after this I won’t drink again.” The end of the world was impending. In that period with danger lurking at every side, getting drunk was without a doubt suicidal behaviour.
“Then that’s good, your words must count as your word ah, otherwise I won’t let you off.” Little aunt’s tone was ferocious, but the concern inside her language was impossible to conceal. Xiao Ziling didn’t want things to be like before his rebirth, and once again lose his Little Aunt. He decided that this time, he would definitely let Little Aunt remain by his side and hence look after her.
“Little Aunt, there’s something important I need to talk to you about, face-to-face. You better come back immediately.” Xiao Ziling’s tone was suddenly serious; Little Aunt could also hear the change. She anxiously asked, “What is it? Is it inconvenient to talk about it over the phone?”
“Really hard to explain clearly in one or two sentences, it’s better if you quickly come back.”
“Alright, once I finish dealing with the things here I’ll return.” Little Aunt was clear that her family’s nephew would not lightly speak such serious words, she was certain something has definitely happened at home. After that, she was in no mood to chat. She directly hung up the phone and went to clean up her own matters.
Why Xiao Ziling called his Little aunt back, the first reason was the impending apocalypse. He had to promptly inform Little Aunt to make good preparations, and another reason was that he was preparing to sell off the house his parents had left him. Even the house where his grandfather and grandmother had lived in would be cleared out.
Concerning the selling of his house, this type of big event he should first discuss with Little Aunt. Although his decision would not change regardless of whether Little Aunt would agree, the vital consultation was still necessary. Also, Xiao Ziling was confident he could persuade Little Aunt to praise his decision.
After all, when the apocalypse comes, people would, one after another, escape from the city to a base. Xiao Ziling’s residential region was a place that had been abandoned. That is to say, this place would be a zombie’s world in the future. There was no worth in letting the house be, so why not cash out in time. With capital, you could gather as many resources much as possible before the deadline, especially all kinds of food and drinking water. Scarcity was a solutionless issue even after 10 years of the apocalypse. Everyone had a severe lack of goods.
So the number one problem Xiao Ziling faced was how to persuade Little Aunt to believe the apocalypse was coming. Frankly admitting he had been reborn, this kind of stupid thing, Xiao Ziling absolutely would not do. The thing about his space also could not be divulged to Little Aunt. Not that he did not trust Little Aunt, but he was afraid of one hundred secrets one mistake* occurring.
Xiao Ziling did not wish to be thought of as problematic by other people and get directly extinguished when he has yet to gain the trust of his backer. Even more so, he did not wish to be dissected and researched. His country, this colossal machine – before the apocalypse no one could resist it. And even after the apocalypse, the power representing the country always loomed over the heads of the common people. It was only during the latter period that strong players from the common people evolved, Chu Zhitian’s appearance especially. Only then had the government’s grasp been broken, turning into a war lord’s separatist regime.
*Green plums and bamboo horses: 青梅竹马, an idiom meaning to have grown up / played together since childhood. Idiom came from a poem describing a boy and girl’s childhood. –
*meng: cuteness / moe
*ha ha: It’s supposed to be a chuckle / masculine laughter. A direct translation would be ‘he he’. But I’m sure most people would be reading the ‘he he’ as ‘hee hee’ instead of ‘h-ugh h-ugh’, the proper way to pronounce it. So I changed it to ‘ha ha’, which is more accurate in terms of conveying meaning, but less accurate in terms of staying true to the original text.
*Lioness of Hedong: idiom referring to a shrewish wife or a henpecked husband
*A hundred secrets, one mistake: 百密一疏, an idiom. Meaning, a single careless mistake leaks a hundred secrets. Literal meaning: Hundred secrets one lax, hundred dense one thin, one hundred close one sparse.
